1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to a glide and the method of installing the glide on tubular products to provide adjustable engagement that is releasable. A glide is an apparatus used in many industries to perform a variety of functions. Most commonly glides are used to finish the end of a tubular product, and function as caps, feet, bumpers, or scratch protectors on products such as furniture, shop and transportation products, and racks and displays. In this patent application tubular products are construed to include hollow materials with circular, elliptical, rectangular, or other conic or polygon cross-section.
2. Description of Related Art
Glides are well known in the art as devices for providing a finishing device on a tubular product to prevent injury due to sharp surfaces, to prevent scratching of surfaces in contact with the tubular product, to reduce noise caused by contact with the end of a tubular product, and to provide a finished look to a tubular product.
The prior art glides use a frictional attachment to the tubular product that is intended to provide a semi-permanent attachment. These are prone to wear when in severe services that are prone to impact and vibration, and thus may become loose or missing in such service. Alternately, if the glide is complicated in design, such as those that swivel, the glide may become broken and the broken glide may be difficult to remove from the tubular product. Glides that use this type of attachment in furniture service are taught in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,991,974 (Carpinella), 6,154,923 (Carpinella), 6,219,882 (Olson), 6,324,725 (Green), 6,719,256 (Rydell et al.), 6,910,246 (Desmarais).
The present invention overcomes these disadvantages of the prior art by providing a glide that is sturdy, is installed with adjustable engagement with the tubular product, and may be disengaged from the tubular product when desirable.